By: Natalie Kayton
6 A.M.: the alarm goes off. Snooze it. No, It’s shower time.
6:02 A.M.: the harsh rip of your warm duvet forces it off of your perfectly toasted body and you slowly place your legs over the bed. You drag yourself to the bathroom and twist the ever-so chilling metal faucet and quickly shed your clothes before stepping into the warm, sprinkling shower head.
6:35 A.M: groomed, lotioned, and face on- you are properly ready to leave.
6:47 A.M.: grab a bar and out the door.
7:00 A.M.: swipe your metro and prepare yourself for the 20-minute ride of people watching.
7:45 A.M.: grab a tall Carmel macchiato, a venti green tea, and a Grande black coffee for yourself. You thank your usual barista for her strange, constant cheerful attitude.
Then you head to work and after a day full of meetings, phone calls, replying to emails, and a short lunch break you have completed another successful day.
Now what.
After your stressful 6 A.M. to 6 P.M. day, a nightly ritual of drinks with your friends is an obvious option. However, tonight you’re not really feeling it.
This, is when you discover, that the best way to unwind after work, could be as simple as having alone “Me” time. Here are some options:
Alone time is a great thing and needs to be appreciated more. It’s refreshing. It’s time to think to yourself and time where you can make your own personal choices; push the trends away and do what you want to do. So, in order to unwind, turn the music up and create a mini spa in your own bathroom, see here for some inspiration. Select your personally-made spa Spotify playlist and relax in the tub with a good book and glass of wine.
Spotify Playlist
Put your phone and laptop away. Make some green tea, soak your feet in a large bowl of warm water if you don’t want to go all in with a tub body soak. Add some sea salt. This does wonders for your feet and your mood.
Have a masseuse come to you: checkout Soothe NYC. 5-star therapists come directly to you licensed and vetted. 7 days a week, up to midnight including holidays and they can be there in 1 hour’s notice. Best part, gratuity is on them.
Take a mini walk to your local library or nearest barnes and noble and unwind in a cafe with a juicy book you’ve been wanting to check out. Love what you read. Do you first.
Substitute gym evenings with dance evenings. Join an Arthur Murray or dance studio near you and take group classes. You won’t need a partner and will get to meet and socialize with other cool people.
The 3 “M’s”: Movies, Music, Magazines (you can add massages here too but we’ve already discussed this one).
Cook yourself and loved one dinner, and include a banging salad.
If you must get on your laptop, plan your next trip or adventure.
The best is when you combine some of the above, but ultimately its completely up to you.
-NK
